THE SMELLS OF THE STABLE - All Our Daily Bread Daily Devotionals for 2026

Our Daily Bread - Saturday, December 25, 2016
by RBC Ministries

Details

THE SMELLS OF THE STABLE

READ:

Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
-Matthew 1:23

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Zephaniah 1-3
Revelation 16

A stable? What a place to give birth to the Messiah! The smells and sounds of a barnyard were our Saviour's first human experience. Like other babies, He may even have cried at the sounds of the animals and the strangers parading around His temporary crib.
If so, they would have been the first of many tears. Jesus would come to know human loss and sorrow, the doubts His brothers and family had about Him, and the pain His mother experienced as she saw Him tortured and killed.
All these hardships - and so much more - awaited the baby trying to sleep that first night. Yet from His very first moments, Jesus was "God with us" (Matthew 1:23), and He knew what it meant to be human. This would continue for over three decades, ending at His death on the cross.
Because of His love for you and me, Jesus became fully human. And being human allows Him to identify with us. Never again can we say that no one understands us. Jesus does.
May the Light that entered the world that night cast its brilliance into the deepest corners of our souls this Christmas, giving us the peace on earth of which the angels spoke so long ago. - Randy Kilgore
Father, help our hearts to know the love of Christ and to honour Him with our unyielding devotion in this and every season. We love You.

Jesus understands.

More From Our Daily Devotional Archives

The LORD is near
for Saturday, December 21, 2013
by Jacob Redekop, Brian Reynolds, John van Dijk, Eugene P. Vedder Jr

Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, who walks in His ways

Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, who walks in His waysBehold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the...More

Open Heavens
for Saturday, February 8, 2014
by Pastor E.A Adeboye

ACCEPTED TIME 2

God is never too early and He is never too late. His timetable is set on purpose; the purpose is not only for your sake but also for His. In all things, His name shall be glorified. No doubt, He would have been glorified healing Lazarus of his sickness, but this can't compare to raising him from the dead after four...More

Open Heavens
for Monday, February 28, 2017
by Pastor E.A Adeboye

IMPEDIMENTS TO PRAYER

Read:
. He is looking for those who are ready and committed to walking in His footsteps. God is holy, and He has called us to holy living. We are to do as He commands because we are the light of the world. God in Heaven is glorified when our light shines in the midst of the darkness of this world. If you...More

The Good Seed
for Monday, January 4, 2022
by GBV Dillenburg GmbH

Standing in the limelight

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern for all who are going to believe on him for everlasting life.
1 Timothy 1:15.16.

Standing in the...More